“My brother was an amazing man. Young, but wise beyond his years out of necessity due to what life had dealt him over the last few years,” Sam Tooley wrote.

“Early this morning tragedy struck,” he wrote. “A fire consumed our home for over two hours, leaving us with almost nothing. Our house can be rebuilt. Our possessions can be replaced. My little brother however, will be forever missed.”

A GoFundMe page has been created by Joe Petti to help the family.

The Tooley’s puppy also died in the fire, according to the fundraising page. In the fire, Petti wrote, the family lost nearly all of their possessions, as well as their everyday necessities.

“All donations will be given directly to the Tooleys to aid them in regaining their everyday necessities and assist them in their continued move forward as a family,” he wrote.

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ - A day after video surfaced of her altercation with a South Orange police officer -- in which she used profanity, threatened to go to the village president and called the police chief “a skinhead cop” -- South Orange Maplewood School Board member Stephanie Lawson-Muhammad issued an apology in which she called her behavior “uncharacteristic” and ...

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ - South Orange Maplewood School Board Member Stephanie Lawson-Muhammad got into an altercation with a South Orange police officer who stopped her for speeding last month, in which she used profanity, complained when she was issued a ticket and called South Orange Police Chief Kyle Kroll “a skinhead cop.”

LINDEN, NJ - Je t’aime Thompson, a senior at Linden High School, has been named the winner of this year’s Marc Wesley Hardy Human Rights Award by the First Congregational Church of Westfield. The award is given annually to a young person who has been an outstanding advocate for human rights and the less fortunate.

UNION COUNTY, NJ - Darlene Candarella of Kenilworth has been named 2018 Union County Municipal Alliance Volunteer of the Year.

Union County Freeholder Chairman Sergio Granados and Local Advisory Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse (LACADA) Chair Carol Berger congratulated the 2018 Municipal Alliance Volunteers of the Year at the LACADA annual volunteer recognition dinner in Union on ...

RAHWAY, NJ - Jayson Gonzalez pitched a five-hitter and also drove in what proved to be the winning run in the second inning of Rahway's 3-2 baseball victory over Brearley on Tuesday at Veterans' Field.

In the second inning, Ryan Beenders doubled and scored on Gonzalez's single to stake Rahway (13-5) to a 3-0 lead. The Indians had taken a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the ...

ELIZABETH, NJ - A rainbow flag will fly for the first time at the Union County Courthouse in recognition of June as LGBTQ Pride Month.

The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders has announced they are holding a public Pride Flag Raising Ceremony for Monday, June 4 at 1 p.m. on the steps of the historic Union County Courthouse on Broad Street in Elizabeth.

SUMMIT, NJ – The Summit Playhouse provides a stellar production of a much loved classic, “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

The Harper Lee novel, later a Gregory Peck film and now a stage production, retains all the warmth, intensity and integrity that made it such an appealing hit in the 1960s. And there will be a new production on Broadway in December with a script by Aaron Sorkin ...

This week's feature will focus on TAPinto Paterson's franchisee, Steve Lenox. Find out how the current owner of a public affairs firm went from a former State Director for Senator Frank Lautenberg to a proud TAPinto franchisee for New Jersey's third largest city.

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ - A day after video surfaced of her altercation with a South Orange police officer -- in which she used profanity, threatened to go to the village president and called the police chief “a skinhead cop” -- South Orange Maplewood School Board member Stephanie Lawson-Muhammad issued an apology in which she called her behavior “uncharacteristic” and ...

As a resident for the past 5 years I have made known my concerns to the council and Mayor. Last year was the first time they did something about an issue with high grass in my neighborhood. It took 4 years to get something done. Now in year 5 the grass is 2 feet high. The answer is give us a call we will get it taken care of.

Home gardeners and property managers who are interested in joining the native plant movement can get resources and information – and plants – through the Union County “Plant Swap & Shop” event on Thursday evening, June 7, from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. at the Union County Demonstration Garden in the Watchung Reservation.